"....From time to time, we have been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule, that government by an elite group is superior to government for, by, and of the people. But if no one among us is capable of governing himself, then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else? All of us together, in and out of government, must bear the burden. The solutions we seek must be equitable, with no one group singled out to pay a higher price....

"So, as we begin, let us take inventory. We are a nation that has a governmentnot the other way around. And this makes us special among the nations of the Earth. Our Government has no power except that granted it by the people. It is time to check and reverse the growth of government which shows signs of having grown beyond the consent of the governed....

"Now, so there will be no misunderstanding, it is not my intention to do away with government. It is, rather, to make it workwork with us, not over us; to stand by our side, not ride on our back. Government can and must provide opportunity, not smother it; foster productivity, not stifle it....

"It is no coincidence that our present troubles parallel and are proportionate to the intervention and intrusion in our lives that result from unnecessary and excessive growth of government. It is time for us to realize that we are too great a nation to limit ourselves to small dreams. We are not, as some would have us believe, doomed to an inevitable decline. I do not believe in a fate that will fall on us no matter what we do. I do believe in a fate that will fall on us if we do nothing. So, with all the creative energy at our command, let us begin an era of national renewal. Let us renew our determination, our courage, and our strength. And let us renew our faith and our hope.

"We have every right to dream heroic dreams. Those who say that we are in a time when there are no heroes just don't know where to look. You can see heroes every day going in and out of factory gates. Others, a handful in number, produce enough food to feed all of us and then the world beyond. You meet heroes across a counterand they are on both sides of that counter. There are entrepreneurs with faith in themselves and faith in an idea who create new jobs, new wealth and opportunity. They are individuals and families whose taxes support the Government and whose voluntary gifts support church, charity, culture, art, and education. Their patriotism is quiet but deep. Their values sustain our national life...

"On the eve of our struggle for independence a man who might have been one of the greatest among the Founding Fathers, Dr. Joseph Warren, President of the Massachusetts Congress, said to his fellow Americans, 'Our country is in danger, but not to be despaired of.... On you depend the fortunes of America. You are to decide the important questions upon which rests the happiness and the liberty of millions yet unborn. Act worthy of yourselves.'

"Well, I believe we, the Americans of today, are ready to act worthy of ourselves, ready to do what must be done to ensure happiness and liberty for ourselves, our children and our children's children.

"And as we renew ourselves here in our own land, we will be seen as having greater strength throughout the world. We will again be the exemplar of freedom and a beacon of hope for those who do not now have freedom.

"To those neighbors and allies who share our freedom, we will strengthen our historic ties and assure them of our support and firm commitment. We will match loyalty with loyalty. We will strive for mutually beneficial relations. We will not use our friendship to impose on their sovereignty, for our own sovereignty is not for sale.

"As for the enemies of freedom, those who are potential adversaries, they will be reminded that peace is the highest aspiration of the American people. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it; we will not surrender for itnow or ever.

"Our forbearance should never be misunderstood. Our reluctance for conflict should not be misjudged as a failure of will. When action is required to preserve our national security, we will act. We will maintain sufficient strength to prevail if need be, knowing that if we do so we have the best chance of never having to use that strength.

"Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have. It is a weapon that we as Americans do have. Let that be understood by those who practice terrorism and prey upon their neighbors....

"The crisis we are facing today....does require....our best effort, and our willingness to believe in ourselves and to believe in our capacity to perform great deeds; to believe that together, with God's help, we can and will resolve the problems which now confront us.

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free. Ronald Reagan

26
posted on 06/05/2004 5:01:55 PM PDT
by Peach
(The Clintons pardoned more terrorists than they ever captured or killed.)

1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever. 6 The angel said to me, These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.

We lost a great man today. The Left will ridicule him and spit on his grave, but those of us with honest and brave hearts will honor him forever.

President Reagan, I was 7 when you were elected. Thank you for keeping me safe and my country prosperous. Thank you for combating evil in the world and in our hearts. Thank you for your wit, humor, and courage. Thank you for protecting my sister, born in 1980. Thank you for giving her a far better world when you left office than when she was born. Thank you for standing up to the John Kerry's and Ted Kennedy's who would have sold us to the Soviets and are now trying to sell us to Bin Laden and North Korea. Thank you for giving us the equipment, training, motivation, and leadership we are now using in the War on Terrorism. Thank you for showing the world the foolishness and lies of socialism and the greatness of a Free, Capitalistic, Republic.

Thank you, and Rest easy at the side of God.

30
posted on 06/05/2004 5:07:20 PM PDT
by M1Tanker
(Proven Daily: Modern "progressive" liberalism is just NAZIism without the "twisted cross")

Ronald Reagan Tribute

1911-2004

Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan

We will always remember. We will always be proud. We will always be prepared, so we may always be free.

--President Ronald Reagan Normandy, France

Ronald Reagan did not fight in either theater of World War II, but he certainly used his talents on the home front selling war bonds and supporting the troops.

The main reason I included this tribute is because he believed in what the World War II GIs were fighting and dying for. He believed in Freedom. He is cognizant that without Freedom, nothing else is important, and that Freedom is worth all it takes to obtain and preserve it.

He fought a different war, in a later time, against another enemy. He didn't storm Nazi guns with a Garand in his hands. He faced the liberal Democrats in Washington, and the Evil Empire in the Soviet Union and he won the Cold War.

This is my way of saying thanks to him, and I hope others will remember.

Ronald Reagan Bio

Ronald Wilson Reagan, the 40th President of the United States, was born February 6th, 1911 in rural Tampico, Illinois. The Ronald Reagan family consisted of his father, John Edward ("Jack"), his mother, Nelle Wilson and Ronald's older brother Neil. The Reagan family lived in several small Illinois towns before settling in Dixon, the place Ronald Reagan considers his hometown.

Ronald Reagan graduated from Dixon High School in 1928 and went on to attend Eureka College, a small liberal arts institution near Peoria, Illinois. He majored in economics and sociology, graduating in 1932 at the height of the Great Depression. His school years seemed to be a model for his future, as he participated in various sports, starred in school plays and served as student body president in both high school and college.

Although the unemployment rate in the country stood at 25%, Ronald Reagan managed to land a job as sportscaster at WOC Radio in Davenport, Iowa. WOC later consolidated with WHO in Des Moines, and "Dutch" (a childhood nickname because of his "Dutch boy" haircut) gained national media exposure recreating Chicago Cubs baseball games from the studio.

In 1937, Ronald Reagan enlisted in the Army Reserve as a Private, but was soon promoted to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant in the Officers Reserve Corps of the Cavalry. That same year, one of his friends arranged for him to take a screen test at Warner Brother's studios. He was hired on the spot, and suddenly he was a Hollywood actor. He made more than 50 films, normally playing the hero, including the part of legendary Notre Dame halfback George Gipp in 1940's "Knute Rockne, All American." "Dutch" was later known by the nickname "the Gipper."

In 1938, while making the film "Brother Rat," Ronald Reagan fell in love with fellow Warner Bros. star Jane Wyman. The couple married in 1940 and Maureen Reagan was born January 4th, 1941. They later adopted a son, Michael in 1945. Their marriage, however, ended in divorce in 1948.

In 1942, Lieutenant Ronald Reagan was called to active duty by the Army Air Force. Capitalizing on his film experience, Lt. Reagan was assigned to 1st Motion Picture Unit in Culver City, California where he assisted in the production of over 400 training films. He was promoted to the rank of Captain in 1943 and discharged on December 9th, 1945, allowing him to resume his acting career.

Ronald Reagan became more involved in the political scene by supporting Harry Truman for president in 1948 and Helen Gahagan Douglas for the Senate in 1950. In 1949, Ronald Reagan met actress Nancy Davis. Sparks flew between the couple and on March 4th, 1952, they were married. That same year, Reagan campaigned as a Democrat for Eisenhower.

Ronald Reagan's second marriage proved more lasting than his first. Nancy devoted herself to supporting her husband's career and raising their two children, Ron and Patti.

In 1964, Ronald Reagan delivered a rousing speech, calling up romantic visions of an America of a bygone era ("We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth.."), on behalf of Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater. Although Goldwater lost the election, Ronald Reagan, the handsome, articulate Hollywood actor was now in the political spotlight.

Backed by several wealthy businessmen in Southern California, Ronald Reagan won a landslide victory over Democratic incumbent Edmund Brown during the 1966 race for California Governor. He began his highly successful eight years as California's governor January 3, 1967.

Ronald Reagan made unsuccessful bids for president in 1968 and 1976, losing the GOP party nomination in both cases. Proving the adage that "third times a charm", he won the Republican party's nomination in 1980. He went on to win the Presidency in a landslide victory by appealing to the common sense of the American people ("...ask yourself, are you better off than you were 4 years ago?")

Ronald Reagan became one of the most popular presidents in history. His economic policies, known as "Reaganomics", resulted in a drop in the inflation rate from 13.5% in 1980 to under 5% by 1982 and throughout the rest of his presidency. His commitment to freedom and opposition to the spread of communism resulted in end of the Cold War in 1989. He maintained a firm and determined stance against terrorism, exemplified by American retaliation against Libya for the death of Americans in a Berlin discotheque in 1986. ("Today we have done what we had to do.") His quick wit endeared him to many, such as when his age was called into question during the presidential debates in 1984, and he remarked "I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience."

Although Ronald Reagan worked hard at solving America's problems, he made no apologies for not putting in 16-hour days at the White House. Often criticized for running what appeared to be a "9-to-5" presidency, he was a devoted family man, spending as much time as he could with Nancy and his children.

A month before the election of his successor, Ronald Reagan reflected on his eight years in office. "I am the same man I was when I came to Washington," he remarked. "I believe the same things I believed when I came to Washington, and I think those beliefs have been vindicated by the success of the policies to which we hold fast." There is little doubt that the many changes effected by the Reagan presidency will play a major role in shaping America's future as we begin this new millennium.

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